Hello everyone,I am posting here because I am facing a very frustrating situation with my contributor account and I am hoping to get some clarity.My account was first deactivated on March 27, 2025 due to “suspicious or irregular sales activity.” I contacted contributor support and after several emails and a long wait, my account was finally reinstated on July 22, 2025 under Case #00386691.After my account was restored, I continued contributing normally and carefully followed all guidelines. In fact, I even contacted support to confirm that everything was fine and that no additional steps were required from my side.However, to my surprise, my account was deactivated again on December 11, 2025, with a similar explanation. Since then I have been waiting again for a response. My current support cases related to this issue are: Case #00463217 Case #00474767 This situation is extremely discouraging because: My account was already reviewed once and reinstated. I did not change my behavior after reinstatement. I do not purchase my own content or use any artificial methods to increase sales. My work and promotion are completely genuine. For contributors who spend a lot of time creating content, these repeated deactivations without clear explanations can be very stressful. When an account is disabled, contributors lose the ability to upload new work, generate income, and even understand what triggered the problem.I understand that Adobe needs to protect the platform from fraud, but when legitimate contributors get caught in automated detection systems, the lack of transparency and long waiting periods make the experience very difficult.I would really appreciate if someone from the Adobe team could provide guidance on: What specific patterns might trigger these flags How contributors can prevent this from happening again Whether there is a way to improve communication during the review process I am also curious if other contributors have experienced similar situations where their accounts were reinstated and then later disabled again.

Inspiring

Question

Account Reinstated Once, Then Deactivated Again – Need Clarity From Adobe

Forum|Forum|26 days ago
March 14, 2026
3 replies
112 views

Hello everyone,

I am posting here because I am facing a very frustrating situation with my contributor account and I am hoping to get some clarity.

My account was first deactivated on March 27, 2025 due to “suspicious or irregular sales activity.” I contacted contributor support and after several emails and a long wait, my account was finally reinstated on July 22, 2025 under Case #00386691.

After my account was restored, I continued contributing normally and carefully followed all guidelines. In fact, I even contacted support to confirm that everything was fine and that no additional steps were required from my side.

However, to my surprise, my account was deactivated again on December 11, 2025, with a similar explanation. Since then I have been waiting again for a response. My current support cases related to this issue are:

Case #00463217
Case #00474767

This situation is extremely discouraging because:

My account was already reviewed once and reinstated.
I did not change my behavior after reinstatement.
I do not purchase my own content or use any artificial methods to increase sales.
My work and promotion are completely genuine.

For contributors who spend a lot of time creating content, these repeated deactivations without clear explanations can be very stressful. When an account is disabled, contributors lose the ability to upload new work, generate income, and even understand what triggered the problem.

I understand that Adobe needs to protect the platform from fraud, but when legitimate contributors get caught in automated detection systems, the lack of transparency and long waiting periods make the experience very difficult.

I would really appreciate if someone from the Adobe team could provide guidance on:

What specific patterns might trigger these flags
How contributors can prevent this from happening again
Whether there is a way to improve communication during the review process

I am also curious if other contributors have experienced similar situations where their accounts were reinstated and then later disabled again.

K

Kuldeep335964901f7oAuthor

Inspiring

Just to add more context to my situation — this is not a small portfolio. I’ve built over 1100+ assets (mostly videos) over the last 2 years, so this isn’t something I started recently.

That’s why repeated deactivation without clear explanation is really difficult to deal with. It’s not just about losing access, it’s about the uncertainty after putting in consistent effort for a long time.

I fully understand that platforms like Adobe Stock need strict systems to prevent abuse, but when genuine contributors get caught in it multiple times, it becomes very hard to trust the process.

I’m still waiting for a response on my current case and hoping to get some clarity soon.

Nancy OShea

Community Expert

When lightening strikes you twice in one year, it’s time to get off that course.

Take a vacation from Adobe Stock.

Submit content to other services or find other interests to pursue.

Good luck going forward.

Nancy O'Shea— Product User & Community Expert

K

Kuldeep335964901f7oAuthor

Inspiring

Thanks, I get what you’re saying and honestly it’s good advice.

The only problem is I’ve already put in around 2 years building my portfolio — over 1100 files, mostly videos. That’s a lot of time and effort, so it’s not easy to just step away from it.

That’s why it feels so frustrating. It’s not just about the account being deactivated, it’s about not knowing what went wrong after putting in so much work.

Also, Adobe Stock is still one of the best platforms for this kind of content, so leaving it completely isn’t a simple decision.

But yeah, I understand your point about not depending on one platform. I’ll definitely think more seriously about that.

Appreciate your reply 👍

RALPH_L

Community Expert

Here an answer to your question about what might trigger the flagging:

Here is a breakdown of what typically constitutes "suspicious activity" in this context:

1. Verification and Identity Issues

Mismatched Details: Discrepancies between the name on the Adobe ID, the tax form (W-8BEN/W-9), and the payout account (PayPal/Payoneer).
Multiple Accounts: Creating more than one contributor account without prior written authorization from Adobe.
IP Inconsistencies: Frequent logins from vastly different geographic locations in a short timeframe, which may suggest account sharing or a compromised account.

2. Intellectual Property & Quality Control

Spamming/Flooding: Uploading massive quantities of nearly identical content (often referred to as "similars"). While variations are allowed, hundreds of shots of the same subject with micro-adjustments can trigger a block.
Generative AI Mislabeling: Failing to tag AI-generated content as "Illustrations" or "Generative AI," or submitting AI content that depicts real people/trademarked property without releases.
Title/Tag Stuffing: Using irrelevant or "trending" keywords that don't match the actual image to manipulate search results.

3. Financial and Payout Irregularities

Self-Buying: Purchasing your own assets to inflate download stats or trigger a payout.
Artificial Download Inflation: Using bots or "download circles" (groups of people who agree to download each other's work) to manipulate the algorithm.
Inconsistent Sales Spikes: A sudden, massive surge in downloads from a single source or a new account can trigger an automatic fraud review.

4. Legal Documentation

Invalid Releases: Submitting forged or improperly filled out Model or Property Releases. If Adobe’s legal team doubts the authenticity of a signature, they will often block the account immediately to prevent legal liability.

1. Verification and Identity Issues

2. Intellectual Property & Quality Control

3. Financial and Payout Irregularities

4. Legal Documentation

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